2009 Season, Injuries

Sizemore needs surgery

18 Comments

The early encouraging returns on Scott Sizemore’s broken tibia have been replaced with a cringe inducing MRI report. During his examination today, it was determined that the injury will require surgery.

Sizemore told John Lowe and the Freep:

“The torn tendons cause instability in the ankle,” Sizemore said. “They are going to put in a few screws to lock everything into place.”

The team isn’t commenting yet. It looked like a sure thing that Sizemore, the Tigers likely second baseman in 2010, would be fully healed in a matter of weeks and the injury would be a non-factor by February. The prognosis isn’t dire at this point, but there is a possibility he won’t be all the way back by the time players report to Lakeland.

Based on the information available in the Free Press article, Baseball Prospectus injury guru Will Carroll said in an email:

“My guess is he’ll be back for ST, but maybe not 100% while he figures out the ankle. It depends on how he heals. It shouldn’t be too much of a long term issue. I’ve never seen a 2B with this, so it’s tough to judge.

Color me cautiously optimistic

Tigers prospect Scott Sizemore needs surgery | Detroit Free Press | Freep.com

18 thoughts on “Sizemore needs surgery”

  1. I broke my ankle in a baseball slide when I was younger. Had three screws put in in an emergency surgery the same night. While the recovery period seemed long at the time, I was back to full strength within six months probably. Sizemore will probably be 100% by March or April.

  2. billfer may be cautiously optimistic, but I am going to be merely cautious and suggest that, to be on the safe side, maybe the Tigers should be thinking about having a different second baseman in ST ready to go in case they have to put Sizemore on hold. While recovering from surgery, how does that effect his off-season training regimen? We don’t want to rush him back in the hope that he will catch up.

  3. The part of all this that interests me so much is the assumption that Sizemore is already the starting second baseman in ’10. I still consider Polanco our second baseman. There are a ton of ifs that must take place before Sizemore were to inherit that position. First, Polanco must sign with another team. Second, if we do lose Polanco, there is an assumption the Tigers do not obtain a proven major-leaguer in a trade. Third, Scott must outperform the other candidates in spring training. Also consider the guy has not played 2 seasons in a row without considerable time missed due to injury. I’m just not convinced he’s the future.

    On the other hand, he did have a nice AVG last year and in ’06. Furthermore, he has plate discipline. He picks good pitches and isn’t afraid to take a walk. Something we could use much more of in the bigs.

    1. Sizemore also has pretty good power numbers for a middle infielder, and I’ve read that scouts like his range but not his hands defensively. That’s something that can be improved, I would think.

      You’re right that they could acquire another major-leaguer in a trade, but with the holes elsewhere on the roster and a capable replacement player at the ready, I would be surprised if Sizemore is not the starting 2b next season (assuming he’s healthy).

  6. How many draft picks could the Tigers potentially get if Polanco leaves and gets signed by another team?

    1. I believe Polly is a Type A free agent, which means that the Tigers would get the signing team’s 1st round pick and a supplemental round pick. If the signing team’s 1st rounder is among the first 15 picks, then the Tigers would get a supplemental and that team’s 2nd round pick.

      Of course, all this requires the Tigers offering Polanco arbitration and him declining.

      1. “Of course, all this requires the Tigers offering Polanco arbitration and him declining.”

        This is what probably will happen. Polanco is in for one more decent payday. He will be looking for a two or three year deal. A deal that he could possibly get from a NL team. The question is how much a team will pay him when he will be towards the end of his career? Does a 3 year, 6 or 7 million per deal sound right? Less?

        While we are at it, do any of these free agents look good? The always wonderful MLBtraderumors site has them all listed out:

        http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2008/12/2010-mlb-free-a.html

        1. The catch is that the teams know he’ll cost them draft picks and his value will thus be reduced. Maybe he gets a 3 year, $20m contract if there are no strings attached, but with strings… doubtful. Polly’s agent knows that, of course, so they might just call the Tigers’ bluff knowing they can probably just try again next season.

          1. I do not think that Polanco’s future team will lose a draft pick, right? Don’t the Tigers just get a compensation pick(s) at the end of the first round if that scenario were to happen? Correct me if I am wrong, but it does not seem like the MLBPA would let a player get punished so badly for getting a better contract after an old one expired.

            1. Making an arbitration offer to free agents classified either as Type A or Type B in the annual Elias rankings is the only way former clubs can secure Draft-pick compensation from signing clubs.

              Basically, Type A free agents return two picks in the 2009 First-Year Player Draft and Type Bs bring one, a sandwich pick between the first two rounds.

              But the red-light caveat is the free agent’s right to accept the offer of arbitration by a Dec. 7 deadline — a move that would guarantee him a new contract with his old team.

              http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081129&content_id=3695771&vkey=hotstove2008&fext=.jsp

              1. Oops, I think we are arguing seperate points. I was wondering what another team will offer Polanco after he declines the Tiger’s arbitartion offer. He will not be back next year. What would he fetch on the free market?

              2. If the Tigers offer arbitration and Polanco declines, whoever signs him will have to give picks to the Tigers. That would make his free market value less than it would be if the Tigers don’t offer arbitration.

                It’s all intertwined. The simple act of offering arbitration lowers his free market value and increases the likelihood that he’ll stay with the Tigers.

    1. Just from what I’ve read is that there seems to be some concern about Sizemore’s defensive ability and if we are going to get use out of an inexpensive prospect, then 2B is the ideal spot for him. It’s not really a good idea to wreck the potential of a good young player by playing him in a position that he can’t handle. Although I haven’t scouted Sizemore so I have no idea how good his defense actually is.

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